The Souls of Black Folk

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Overview

"The problem of the twentieth century is the problem of the color line," wrote W.E.B. Du Bois in The Souls of Black Folk, one of the most prophetic and influential works in American literature. First published in 1903, this eloquent collection of essays exposed the magnitude of racism in our society. The book endures today as a classic document of American social and political history: a manifesto that has influenced generations with its transcendent vision of change. John Edgar Wideman observed: "Like Freud’s excavations of the unconscious, Einstein’s revelations of the physical universe, Marx’s exploration of the economic foundations of social organization, Du Bois’s insights have profoundly altered the way we look at ourselves." This edition includes an introduction by Herb Wood.The Modern Library has played a significant role in American cultural life for the better part of a century. The series was founded in 1917 by the publishers Boni and Liveright and eight years later acquired by Bennett Cerf and Donald Klopfer. It provided the foundation for their next publishing venture, Random House. The Modern Library has been a staple of the American book trade, providing readers with afford-able hardbound editions of impor-tant works of literature and thought. For the Modern Library’s seventy-fifth anniversary, Random House redesigned the series, restoringas its emblem the running torch-bearer created by Lucian Bernhard in 1925 and refurbishing jackets, bindings, and type, as well as inau-gurating a new program of selecting titles. The Modern Library continues to provide the world’s best books, at the best prices.

Table of Contents

Introduction by Donald B. GibsonAcknowledgmentsSuggestions for Further Reading

THE SOULS OF BLACK FOLK

The Forethought

I. Of Our Spiritual StrivingsII. Of the Dawn of FreedomIII. Of Mr. Booker T. Washington and OthersIV. Of the Meaning of ProgressV. Of the Wings of AtalantaVI. Of the Training of Black MenVII. Of the Black BeltVIII. Of the Quest of the Golden FleeceIX. Of the Sons of Master and ManX. Of the Faith of the FathersXI. Of the Passing of the First-BornXII. Of Alexander CrummellXIII. Of the Coming of JohnXIV. Of the Sorrow Songs